I'm having a dinner party and want to make as much ahead as I can. I need advice from experienced, good cooks!!
I really do so much better preparing ahead of time and enjoying my company...help!!!! Thank you for taking the time to respond.
Answers: The party is Saturday night and I will be making Sea Bass with breadcrumbs and lemon, roasted potatoes with shallots and whole garlic cloves, and string beans almondine. I am also making a dip made with crumbled bacon, swiss cheese with mayo and scallions. What can I prepare today (Thursday) and tomorrow (Friday) and Saturday?
I really do so much better preparing ahead of time and enjoying my company...help!!!! Thank you for taking the time to respond.
OK. Are you making your own breadcrumbs? If you are, then make them now and put them in a ziplock in the fridge or freezer. Is that just lemon juice for the sauce? You can juice or zest today and put them in the fridge. Wash the potatoes today. Peel your shallots and garlic and put them in the fridge. Clean the green beans and put them in a bowl of water in the fridge. You can fry the bacon today, crumble it, and put it in a ziplock in the fridge. Make the dip tomorrow, dip is always better the next day.
OK, tomorrow, get every single thing you need to prepare and lay it out. Pots, pans, cutting boards, knives, measuring cups, plates, bowls, everything. Set food things like the almonds or pantry goods out. That way all you have to do is walk into the kitchen and whack it all together.
I do this every day.
The only thing you can prepare beforehand is the dip. The rest of the items will be better if they are made fresh, and not reheated or kept warm for a long time.
you could probablt prepare your potato dish and freeze it. I would wait on the meat until the day of your party same for the beans.
The only thing you can prep ahead of time is your dip, don't make it until Saturday morning as the mayonnaise could get watery, and also should be mixed with other ingredients and left to sit. You also may be able to par-steam your beans, and throw them in a pan and reheat quickly... make sure you do not overcook if you do them earlier in the day.
If you want to prepare ahead of time you will have to change your menu. You can not prep fish ahead of time.
Good options for the future are things like potato gallette or the types of mashed potato that has the ingredients added and then baked which can then be throw in to warm up. Main proteins that can be grilled and then topped with a sauce that can be reheated such as beef medallions with a red wine sauce. you can make the sauce ahead of time, and reheat while you grill the steak. Also Greek food is often served at room temp. Desserts are easy to make ahead of time... and you can also serve cold appetizers.
I have tons of dinner parties and try to make sure I only have one thing to prep on the day per coures. You can search for make ahead recipes as well. Good luck.
If it were me,I would start early Saturday so everything would be fresh. Start before noon & then just heat it up,except the bass,make it in time for the dinner.
yes, as the others answered - there isn't much of this you can prepare beforehand - you have given yourself a quite difficult menu but it sounds delicious. the dip easily made friday. the breadcrumbs and all else, will have to be done closer to the time on Saturday - if you have an open kitchen you can prepare and entertain at the same time - and have your guests help out! you know - like Jamie Oliver style
here's a lovely idea to have with coffee afterwards - it always wins me compliments.
you can make strawberry baguettes. they are absolutely delicious and really special, and not difficult to make at all. you can prepare everything today and then put them together on the saturday morning.
you need - (depending on number of guests) - packets of italian sponge finger biscuits - nice to have about 2 biscuits per guest. you can buy them at your local deli or some supermarkets sell them.
in a bowl you will need to mix 1 cup of mascarpone cheese with 1 tablespoon confectioners sugar (also called caster sugar) and 1/2 teaspoon of fresh scraped vanilla bean (or use vanilla extract 1/2 teaspoon if you can't buy fresh vanilla beans). mix well. cover in plastic wrap and it will keep fresh in the fridge for up to 4 days.
buy a tub of fresh strawberries and a bunch of fresh mint.
slice the strawberries thinly and break the mint into little leaflets.
you slice the crisp but soft sponge biscuit lengthways.
spread the mascarpone cheese on both halves of the biscuit. add a few of the strawberry slices and a mint leave and put the biscuit back together.
Wrap a strip of baking paper (about 1 inch x 4 inches) around the centre of the little strawberry baguette and tie with a piece of white string around it.
they look absolutely divine - and very "french chic" - serve displayed in a big flat basket with piles of fresh strawberries around them. i promise you, these are so delicious.
if you have trouble getting the sponge biscuits - you can use nice little flat round shortbread cookies instead and make mini strawberry and mint and mascarpone shortcakes - not as cute as the paper and string wrapped italian biscuits - but still sweet.
Just lay things out ahead of time & start on it earlly Sat morning.